For those that are not familiar with Toro it is the meat from the underbelly of the Tuna and is also the most expensive cut. Like beef, Toro is divided into grades based on the marbling of the meat. There are two types of grades for Toro with O-Toro being the most marbled and Chu-Toro the least.
Kim and I were hesitant at first thinking if we should visit a fine dining restaurant since it was our last night in Shanghai. We decided to go for Tenya after receiving a reminder from Eric to “PLEASE” try it out.
We took a cab and headed to their branch around the French Concession on Huashan Road. It was difficult to locate the restaurant as it was situated on the second floor of a corner plaza. The small restaurant signboard wasn't even lit up making it even harder to find.
The restaurant was packed with many Japanese Expats and we were lucky to be seated on the last vacant table. The main menu was focused on all things Toro with the addition of some salads and other fresh Sashimi. There is also a Sushi Menu, which is only given upon request. Eric was right about the prices, Tenya is definitely the cheapest place I’ve seen for Toro. With such good prices we ordered quite a number of dishes to try…
O-Toro Sashimi
Our O-Toro Sashimi did not have the melt in your mouth experience that I was hoping for. Parts of the O-Toro was chewy and this was probably from the cutting skills of the chef.
Salmon Sashimi
I’ve ordered Salmon Sashimi in every Japanese Restaurant I’ve been to and the one served at Tenya is definitely fresh. However I was a little surprised when I found a bone in one of my salmon.
Bukkake Sushi
The name may sound gross (for those of you that know what it means) but believe me there is a reason why it is called this. Think a layer of really good Sushi Rice that is splattered with chopped high-end super fresh Chu-Toro, really good Ikura and Real King Taraba Crab Meat. This was one orgasmic sushi!
Maguro-Toro Shabu
Ahhh... another excellent Toro dish! Swish the Chu-Toro in the bonito broth for a few seconds and the texture in your mouth is almost indescribable. The fish literally melts in your mouth and comes bursting with tuna fat goodness!
Maguro Sushi Zanmai
We ended our meal with an assortment of Tuna Sushi. There were O-Toro, Chu-Toro, Chopped Maguro, Semi-cooked O-Toro and Minced O-Toro and Chu-Toro Sushi. It had the right amount of fish to rice combination and actually had us craving for more.
Food: 4.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Price: $$$$ (Under USD $50 per person, which is great value considering the amount of Toro we had)
Contact Information
Address: 2/F, Lane 1520 Huashan Lu, near Tai'an Lu, Shanghai
Tel: +86 6281 4918
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